George E. Marr (December 4, 1922 – April 21, 2014)

George E. Marr, one of the founding fathers of the Los Angeles Planning History Group, will be sorely missed.

Marr, a pioneering planner and demographer in the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning, was a 36 year employee of the County. He received his degree from UCLA, starting his career with Regional Planning in 1952. Marr, was also a veteran of the United States Army, having served in World War II.

He was a highly respected demographer and urban planner and the long-time head of the Los Angeles County Population Research bureau within the Department of Regional Planning. He published the “Population Bulletin” for the County of Los Angeles. His demographic research and population projections were in great demand from the 1960’s through the 1980’s. Local and regional newspapers anxiously awaited these quarterly reports on County growth impacts which showed population changes on a small scale and were calculated by hand, using building permit data from all cities within the County. This information assisted jurisdictions and agencies in planning for infrastructure growth, schools, parks, and other public service needs throughout the County.

His specialty was demography, serving as the Department’s head of the population research section. He was the lead analyst and contributor to the Los angeles-Long Beach SMSA input for the US Census for 1960, 1970, 1980, and 1990. Included in his duties for the County, Marr also served as contract consultant for the Cities of Paramount, La Mirada, and Bell Gardens.

Historical preservation was his major passion. He contributed his extensive urban planning collection to the huntington library, actively participated in the Los Angeles Conservancy, and served on the founding board of direction to the Los Angeles Planning History Group.